Subscriptions

Welcome to the May/June edition of Australian Wildlife Secrets. This issue is our twelfth to date and it marks the end of our second year! And we are excited that this is also our first direct-to-digital edition — our early birthday present to you.

The digital edition is available for computers, tablet devices such as the iPad, and smart phones, so you can read our fabulous wildlife articles anywhere, anytime! The digital version is fantastic value and can be downloaded either from the Apple iTunes store, if you are an iPhone/iPad user, or from ilovemagazines.com.au if you would like to enjoy the magazine across all devices, including PC and iPad.

Check out our website for details.

Our print edition is still, of course, conveniently delivered direct to your door if you are a subscriber and available at all good newsagents. And speaking of subscriptions, we have a brand new competition only for our print/digital subscribers. For your chance to join a fantastic seven-day expedition in Northern Queensland, working alongside the scientists from EarthWatch, all you need to be is a subscriber (new or existing) by 30 June 2013. See page 22 for details on how to enter.

In this issue we look at some of the amazing animals that survive in the harsh, white world of Antarctica. John Cooper takes us inside his incredibly built tower to peek at a family of kestrels. And we bet you haven’t had a chimpanzee climb unexpectedly into your arms — well Fiona Mikowski did and tells about all about her amazing experiences at Ape Action Africa. There’s also some fun Secret Sightings, like romantic Green Tree frogs, plus the O’Mahoneys snap some busy creatures in their Secret Shutterbugs feature. (continue reading…)

In this issue we dive into the ocean depths. Every year those most enigmatic of animals, whales, traverse our oceans, often coming close enough to shore for us to view. Described as the ‘greatest wildlife show on earth’, the inevitable network of boats that races out to meet them is no longer doing so with harpoons, thankfully, but with cameras and binoculars! In this special we look at the top spots to see whales around the country.

Further afield, Tony Holland takes us on a classic African safari – to an exotic location where you will find a dramatic world of animals only seen in Australia in the zoo. In the wilds of Africa, in particular at the Maasai Mara reserve, the savagery and wonders of life are played out in our Secret Places special.

And back home Maggie Harriman tells us about the plight of a female Wedge-tailed Eagle that needed to be separated from her nest and brood due to a serious injury.

Get ready to scroll, pinch and zoom in on your favourite animals! Wildlife Secrets now brings all the news and features across the wildlife globe right to your computers, tablets and smart phones. This issue will be released digitally and our readers will soon be able to subscribe to the digital edition as well as the print edition. Our digital apps will be ready sometime in May and will allow people to download the current edition and past editions, as well as select from multiple subscription offerings. Stay tuned by following us on Facebook or the Wildlife Secrets Blog.

Without a doubt, marsupials are fascinating, but over the decades many wild myths have emerged about them. In Marsupial Myths, Amy Prendergast uncovers the truth about these unique animals.

In the final instalment of our special investigation into the pros and cons of feeding wildlife, Wildlife Feeding Part 2, the Wildlife Secrets Team has put together loads of useful advice to help you understand the real needs of native animals.

John Cooper trudges across forbidden terrain . . . okay, a maze of rice field levees near Leeton in NSW . . . to rediscover a colony of egrets he once photographed there. To his surprise, they are still managing to eke out a living among the crops, but he wonders for how much longer?

Secret sightings

There she blows . . . and what a beauty. Nicolas Entrup tells us all about the first-ever, all-white, orca killer whale to be observed by scientists. It’s a fascinating account of a rare event.

Lindsay Titmarsh goes on a quest to discover if there really is a Saltwater Crocodile in the Mary River in southeast Queensland, or if it just a local legend.

Secret places

Kangaroo Island. Hop on over to this idyllic isle off the South Australian coast with Ken Griffiths and you’ll find out there is much more to discover than its namesake suggests.